World of Warcraft: Alliance Players Guide Excerpt

So I got this email the other day. ?Please write an article about the Alliance Player?s Guide.? Well, I haven?t even thought about the Alliance Player?s Guide. I?m up to my eyebrows in More Magic & Mayhem and up to my knees in Lands of Mystery. (Of course I?m not going to tell my editor that?) So, the Alliance Player?s Guide, huh? I?ll get right on that.

(Several days pass?)

Okay. The Alliance Player?s Guide gives you a wealth of information about the Alliance. No surprises there. The book specifically targets players who run characters who are members of the Alliance, but GMs will certainly appreciate the information about the Alliance?s structure and history, as well as the information on the races that make up the Alliance. You?ll find descriptions of how each of the Alliance races think and function?what?s important to them and what their daily life is like?all of which helps you roleplay these guys, whether you?re controlling a PC or an NPC.

Players get even more benefit from the Alliance Player?s Guide, making full use of the feats, classes, and spells focused specifically on the Alliance and its races (though most are usable by anyone). Horde players can take the information in the APG and use it to infiltrate, sabotage, and topple the Alliance. ?Information is ammunition,? according to a card in an old CCG I used to play.

In addition to all this goodness, the APG introduces several new races that are members or friends of the Alliance. These folks are not as populous as the gnomes, humans, Ironforge dwarves, or night elves, nor have they made as big an impact on recent history as the other races. They are, however, still valued and skillful individuals, important to the Alliance. The APG includes descriptions for half-elves, furbolgs, and Wildhammer dwarves? and they?re not all. Here?s a sneak peak at the Wildhammer dwarves, which probably

won?t change too much between now and when the finished version hits your store shelves. Enjoy!

Dwarf, Wildhammer

Description: Wildhammer dwarves are feral and untamed, prone to revelry, shamanism, and daring acts of bravery (or stupidity). They eschew technological gadgets in favor of nature magic and straightforward weapons, including their famous stormhammers. Wildhammer dwarves are famous across Azeroth for their unique relationship with gryphons. They treat these noble creatures as equals rather than mounts or pets. The gryphons respond to their handlers? respect and are steadfast and resolute in return. This close relationship produces the most famous Wildhammer dwarves: the gryphon riders, heroes of the Second and Third Wars.

Wildhammer dwarves are fearless warriors and unswerving opponents of evil. They take to the skies astride gryphons to combat vile creatures such as harpies and drakes, and unnatural contraptions like goblin zeppelins. They are distant, even distrustful, toward members of other races; they?re content to deal almost exclusively with gryphons and nature spirits. Yet despite their insular nature, Wildhammer dwarves do not hesitate to come to the aid of their allies when the need arises.

The fanatical archaeological fervor that seizes the Ironforge dwarves does not fall upon the Wildhammers. Perhaps they are descended from these mysterious Titans, but what does that matter? Wildhammer dwarves live in the present and do not dwell on the past. Their rejection of their titan ancestry denies them the power that their Ironforge brethren discover, but the Wildhammers make up for it with

bravery, determination, and wildness.

Appearance: Wildhammer dwarves are similar in appearance to their Ironforge kin, though many shave their heads. Exposure to sun and high winds darkens and toughens their skin. Wildhammers string beads into their hair and beards as good luck charms, and they paint tattoos on their bodies in homage of the totems, ideas, and creatures they revere.

Region: The Wildhammer clan hails from Aerie Peak in the Hinterlands of Lordaeron, a region as yet untouched by the Scourge. Here they work to preserve nature and prevent evil from tainting their lands, waging a constant war against the native forest trolls. Though cool to humans and to Ironforge dwarves, many Wildhammers traveled to Kalimdor with Jaina Proudmoore to combat the Horde. Those in Kalimdor avoid Theramore, preferring the open skies. Wildhammers are wanderers and explorers, skirting large cities and concentrating in mountains and other wilderness areas.

Affiliation: Alliance. Wildhammer dwarves are distant with humans and Ironforge dwarves, but have formed a kinship with high elves. Wildhammers and high elves shared much in common in the past, including a love of nature and hatred of evil. Many high elves have grown introverted and brooding of late, which concerns the Wildhammers. The dwarves are appalled at the existence of the blood elves, and they see their high elven allies with new eyes. Wildhammers also get along well with night elves, as the two races share much.

Ironically, the Wildhammers might have more in common with the Horde than with the Alliance, but longtime rivalry and natural distrust prevents meaningful contact. Like other members of the Alliance, Wildhammers fought orcs in generations of warfare and cannot let old rivalries die. (Continues Next Page)